This is not good for the budget and I don't have room for it either, but I am convincing myself it makes sense..... at the beginning of winter I buy an MF12GT (1972) 110 km away, get it home and in pieces for total restoration and then yesterday I find a working MF10 not more than 10 km round the corner. Well, the grass does need cutting now and since this MF10 has narrow tires, aluminium nose and dash and is running (serial# is hard to see on the label but looks like ...004140), I stopped thinking rationally and paid for it this afternoon.

It comes with a sleeve hitch and mower - the hitch in pristine condition and the mower is good enough to run for this season. I was tempted to drive it home, but the variable speed drive needs adjusting so it will come home on a trailer this w/e.

The picture (off Kijiji) makes it look a little better than it is. It has had a rerouted choke cable, new seat and a different steering wheel, some panels have been replaced I think, but it mostly looks original and not very rusty at all. Now I have to learn about starter generators, points and all the foibles of the older MF10s - I am hoping the combined widom on this forum can keep me straight.

Thath happened to me twice, I bought a MF8 200 miles away and I find on just down the road in even better shape a week later, I go to St. Louis (380mi) for a nice 1650 and I find two more of them 10 miles away the following month. Very nice score.

Hi George nice looking tractor, I remember seeing that on KIJIJI, didn't realize it had narrow wheels though. Are the front and rears narrow? A sure fire way to tell if it's a 66 is look for the "missing" center frame rib under the engine behind the front axle where it bends up if it looks like the one in the this pic it is a 66, anybody can change around lots of parts but nobody is going to change the frame.
First is a 66
2nd is all the rest

Thanks Doug, Yes I checked underneath - no centre rib, and six mounting holes for the engine. The engine has me puzzled though - it looks very much like yours and the ignition looks the same (at least as far as I can tell from the pics on your restoration post), but the numbers on the tin tell me it is an HH120. I think it may have had some new tin at some stage of its life. Sadly I don't have time for even a part tear down to investigate now.

It was sold as running and mowing - well - it would run, but just - the varidrive tension spring was dangling (broken hook at one end), so that got fixed..... and it would mow too, except on taking off the mower cover, I found the idler was running around its post without any bearing left in the middle - so it wasn't going to mow for long (but no play in the bearings and not much rust to speak of). Anyway, an idler was stolen off the another mower, plus a lot of little fixes - but really not too much - and away we went! Everything is just repairs for now - restoration will have to wait until next winter, by which time - with luck - the MF12 will be able to blow the snow.

The previous owner had had it repaired for $300 - including sharpening the blades (and not replacing the idler?) and one trick I had not seen before, a foam rubber bushing around the throttle shaft. The engine idles beautifully, but I am not sure how long that little fix is going to last. I have just reamed out the carb for the MF12 and need to turn up a bushing, once that is done I may swap them while I do this one as well (both Walbro LMEs, the MF12is 36 and the MF10 is 27).

For now though we were able to get the grass cut without bother. If she can last through the summer without incident then I can start on proper repairs. If I get a chance to use my camera I will take and post some pictures.

HH100 and HH120 I think the only difference is bore and stroke everything else inter changeable, if you got a 120 instead of a 100 bonus, extra power. The only way to tell is measure the bore. I keep my 67MF12 Hydra in good running order, the others are just hobby toys.